Wire fabric.



PATENTBD APR. 12, 1904.

I. SUT'IIBRLAI'ID.`

WIRE FABRIC. APPLICATION FILED IEB. 1o. 1902.

Y z SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No MODEL.

1HE-imams qms co. PHUroLlmo., wnnmmomru. c.

No. 757,244." Y PATBNTEDAPR-12, 1904. T. SUTHERLAND. WIRE FABRlG.

APPLIOATION FILED FBB10.1902. N0 MODEL; 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2,

Patented April 12, 1904.

`UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

, THOMAS SUTHERLAND, OF HUTOHINSON, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR OF THREE- iFOURTHS TO GUS R. ZIOKRIOK, OF HUTOHINSON, MINNESOTA.

`WIRE FABRIC.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 757,244, dated April12, 1904.

Application filed February l0, 1902.k Serial No. 93,324.l (No model.) li VT0 all whom it mfy concern:

Beit known that LTHoMAs SUTHERLAND, a citizen of Canada, residing atHutchinson, in the county of McLeod and State of Minnesota, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Wire Fabrics; `and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and eX- actdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its' object to provide an improved wire fabric.This fabric was especially designed for use,as a wire fence, but

-is also capable of application to other uses.

The invention is hereinafter described, and defined in the claims.

The invention isillustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likenotations refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is a diagram view showing the reversely-looped independent wires as they appear at the end of the first step ofthe process. Fig. 2 is aview showing one of the paneled sections of thefabric or the result at the end of the second step of the process. Fig.3 is a view, partly in diagram, for illustrating the third step of theprocess and showing the'same as completed in respect to two of thepaneled sections of the fabric, but incomplete in respect to a thirdpaneled section. Fig. 4 is a view showing the complete product or resultas it appears at the end of the third step and also showing in diagramthe y position taken by marginal or top and bottom lock members of themarginal cables when it is desired to have the marginal wires of morethan one strand, the said View showing said lock-wires in positionassumed thereby before being cabled or twisted together Vwith themarginal members of the paneled section; and Fig. 5 shows the completefabric of the form wherein the lock-wires are included as part of themarginal or top and bottom line-wires.

Independent wires to any desired number, according to the strengthdesired, are first bent into similar reverse loops having right-angledlegs, and these reversely -looped wires are brought into positionrelative to each other, as shown by the wires l and 2 in Fig. 1. Thenone corresponding set of the loop-legs of said wires are twistedtogether, thereby forming a paneled section of the fabric, (marked 3,)one of which paneled sections is illustrated detached in Fig. 2 andanother as position ed near one member of an other pair lof paneledsections vpreviously twisted toto each other with their hitherto-twistedlegs in alinement with each other and their hitherto untwisted legs'parallel with and adjacent to each other, as shown in Fig. 3, and thenthe untwisted legs of the respec- .tive paneled sections are twistedtogether to form'the fabric marked 4 in Figs. 3 and 4. Then, if desired,marginal lock or reinforcing wires A5, such as shown adjacent to thefabric 4 in Fig. 4, may be added by disposing said wires 5 as shown insaid Fig. 4 and then twisting together the adjacent or marginal vstrandsof the paneled sections or fabric 4 and the adjacent portions of saidmarginal orlock wires, thereby producing the fabric marked 6 andillustrated in Fig. 5. In applying the second step of the process thecorresponding sets of legs of the reversely-looped wires shown in Fig.l, which are to be twisted together, are all twisted in a commondirection for any given paneled section, as shown by the arrows in Figs.1 and 2; but these twists are in reverse directions `on alternatepaneled sections which go into the fabric, as may be seen from aninspection of Figs. 8 and 4, wherein the arrows indicate the directionof the twists. When the third step of the process is applied to cabletogether two such paneled sections as shown in Fig. 2, the othercorresponding set of the loop-legs are all twisted in a commondirection. If we call the loop-legs shown as twisted together in Fig. 2the vertical legs, then we may call the other legs of 'the loops and thepaneled sections the horizontal legs. The horizontal IOO legs being alltwisted in a common direction from central points between successivesets of the vertical legs, it follows from that fact and the reversetwists in the vertical legs that all the wires of all the legs will beinterlocked at the joints between the vertical and the hori- Zontal legsand that the strands of each cablev will reverse at said joints. Thismakes an extremely strong interlock at said joints, while at the sainetime the said joints are sufliciently open to render the fence somewhatelastic. In fact, such an interlock will exist no difference how thepaneled sections may be twisted together. Otherwise stated, the exactrelation of the reverse twists above noted is not essential to theinterlock. It onlydetermines the relative location of the wires which dobecome interlocked-to wit, as to whether one be over or under the other.Under this process all the elements of the fabric are cabled together insuch a strong way that the parts of the fabric cannot be pulled apart,but, on the contrary, the wires will break before they will I untwistunder 'the application of any strains thereto. This has beendemonstrated in practice.

It should be noted that no filling-wires are employed. The whole fabricif of the form marked 4 in Figs. 3 and 4 is made up from a succession ofpaneled sections, such as that shown in Fig. 2, whichin turn had beenmade from the loop-wires, such as shown in Fig. l.

` The original loop-wires, therefore, when properly twisted togetherconstitute all the longitudinal cables and all the stay-cables of thefence or fabric when the fabric is in the form of one member on theother to occur.

bles are so interlocked with the cross members or cables that it isimpossible for any slippage Moreover, slack can be readily adjusted asdesired to adapt the fabric to any desired tension of stretch. Finally,it may be added that this fabric is comparatively cheap to make.

The advantages above noted as peculiar to this novel fabric Well adaptthe same tothe commercial demands for wire fence.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is as follows:

1. A wire fabric composed of several paneled sections havingcorresponding legs thereof twisted together, and which paneled sectionsare formed of reversely-looped independent wires having correspondinglegs thereof twisted together, substantially as described.

2. A wire fabric composed of several paneled sections havingcorresponding legs thereof twisted together, which paneled sections areformed of reversely-looped independent wires having corresponding legsthereof twisted together, and which fabric has marginal, or top andbottom, line-cables composed of the horizontal strands of the originalpanels and reinforcing line-wires twisted together, substantially as andfor the purposes set forth.

3. A wire fabric formed of a series of linewires reversely looped inopposite directions to form vertical and horizontal strands, eachcomposedof pairsof wires suitably twisted together substantially asdescribed.

4. A wire fabric, composed of a series of line-wires reversely looped inopposite directions and forming vertical and horizontal strands, eachconsisting of a pair of wires and the wires of each strand beingsuitably twisted together, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS SUTHERLAND.

Witnesses:

M. D. PENDEGAsT, FRANK MONROE.

